1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to methods and apparatus for providing a product or service to user/subscribers of a telecommunication system and, more particularly, to such methods and apparatus in which a calling subscriber""s telecommunication system terminal device provides the means of access to products and payment for purchases made through an automated vending or delivery apparatus.
2. Description of Related Art
It is known in the prior art to provide in a telecommunications network various specially-priced service numbers that are commonxe2x80x94i.e. accessiblexe2x80x94to all callers, as for example telephone numbers beginning with the prefix 0600 or 0700. Such service numbers, so-called B-numbers, are not however actual subscriber numbers; rather, the switching and exchange system of the telecommunication network connects the calling subscriber""s calls to the actual subscriber numbers, the so-called C-numbers, behind the service numbers. This type of solution is typically implemented utilizing an intelligent network.
Also known are arrangements in which mobile telecommunication stations are used in various payment systems for electronic payment applications. However, there is no heretofore-available prior art solution with which a customer can use a mobile telecommunication station as a means of payment for different commodities, such for example as beverages, sweets, tobacco and tickets and the like, that are purchased through an automated vending machine. Moreover, the user of a mobile station has not heretofore been able to control or effect the operation of such an automated service or delivery apparatus by means of his/her mobile station.
Currently, the user of the automated apparatus may not necessarily be carrying any cash or coins of suitable value for use in operating the apparatus or making the purchase, in which case it would in accordance with the present invention be practical to pay for vendor purchases using, by way of example, a user""s mobile telephone. It has also not been possible in prior art methods and arrangements to predeterminately define a particular limited group of users for which the automated apparatus is intended; rather, the lack of restriction has meant that anyone has been able to use the apparatus or service.
It is accordingly the desideratum of the present invention to eliminate the drawbacks and deficiencies of the prior art, as for example described above.
It is a particular object of the invention to provide a method and system in which a customer""s terminal device, preferably a subscriber""s mobile phone or station that is connected to a telecommunication network, is operable to function as a means of payment for purchases made through a vending machine or other automated apparatus.
It is a further object of the invention to provide such a method and system in which optional, predetermined actions related to an automated service or product delivery system are carried out by means of a mobile station and a control unit of the automated apparatus and of the mobile station and that is located in the automated apparatus, in accordance with instructions provided by the customer via his/her mobile station.
In accordance with the invention, the system includes a first terminal device, a control center, an automated apparatus comprising a second terminal device and a control unit connected thereto, a telecommunication network comprising an intelligent network, a first telecommunication connection and a second telecommunication connection. The control center preferably incorporates means for handling short messages and/or data calls.
The first and second terminal devices, as well as the control center, are connected to the telecommunication network which may itself include means for determining the location of the calling subscriber. The intelligent network may additionally be provided with means for directing a call to an automated apparatus located nearest to the network-determined location of the terminal device. The intelligent network may also include apparatus or the ability for outputting to the calling subscriber a voice message reporting the status or condition of the automated apparatus and for determining charge data regarding the call.
The control unit incorporates means for controlling and monitoring the functions of the automated apparatus and for monitoring the second telecommunication connection. It further includes means for setting the second terminal device, which may (in preferred forms of the invention) be located in or form an integrated part of the automated apparatus, to a xe2x80x9cbusyxe2x80x9d or xe2x80x9cno answerxe2x80x9d state and, when necessary, shutting off or powering down the second terminal device. The control unit may for example be implemented by a computer or microcontroller.
In accordance with the methods of the invention, the calling subscriber orders a product from an automated service apparatus (such as a vending machine) by means of a first terminal device by setting up or establishing a first telecommunication connection with the called subscriber number, whereupon the first telecommunication connection is directed to an intelligent network. In the intelligent network, call charge data is determined, a second telecommunication connection with a second terminal device is established and the automated apparatus is controlled, as hereinafter described, by means of a control unit of or associated with the automated apparatus on the basis of the second telecommunication connection and the current state of the automated apparatus.
Thus, if the automated apparatus has run out of the product ordered and/or the service is busy, then the control unit sets the second terminal device to a xe2x80x9cbusyxe2x80x9d or xe2x80x9cno answerxe2x80x9d state and the user of the first terminal device is informed of this state of the automated apparatus by means of a voice message delivered over the first telecommunication connection.
If, on the other hand, the automated apparatus has run out of all available products and/or services, then the control unit shuts off the second terminal device, and the user of the first terminal device is likewise informed (as by means of a voice message) of this state of the automated apparatus.
In the event of a malfunction in the automated service apparatus, the control unit sets the second terminal device to a xe2x80x9cbusyxe2x80x9d or xe2x80x9cno answerxe2x80x9d state, and the user of the first terminal device is similarly informed, vocally or otherwise, of this state of the automated apparatus.
In further accordance with the methods and system of the invention, the location of the calling subscriber can be determined on the basis of the location data of the first terminal device and the second telecommunication connection can be set up with a second terminal device (and, thereby, a particular automated apparatus) known or determined to be nearest or closely proximate to the calling subscriber. The user group able or permitted to access an automated apparatus can also be predeterminately limited by remotely identifying the calling subscription and confirming whether that calling subscriber has access rights to the particular products and/or services, as determined by the called subscription rights.
Information about the state or status of the automated apparatus can also be transmitted to a remote service center by periodically or otherwise selectively sending a status inquiry message from the service center to the second terminal device, in response to which the automated apparatus transmits the requested status information to the service center. The automated apparatus may for example inform the service center when the automated apparatus has run out of a product or has malfunctioned. The transmission to the service center of such information regarding the status of the automated apparatus allows for easier and more timely maintenance and refilling of the automated apparatus and makes it unnecessary to separately inspect each apparatus at fixed periods at its physical location. Transmission of the status data may be effected using a data or text message connection.
The inventive system further includes means for directing the first telecommunication connection to an intelligent network and means for setting up a telecommunication connection with the second terminal device.
The methods and system of the invention thus provide a fast, efficient and reliable solution for paying for vended purchases from an automated apparatus by means of a conventional terminal device in or connected or connectable to a telecommunication network. An advantage for the user is the ability to operate the automated apparatus by means of his/her mobile telephone and to activate the automated apparatus to perform predetermined operations relating to the service, e.g. by simply calling an optional predetermined service number. Thus, the mobile station functions as a kind of remote controller of the automated apparatus. Moreover, the user need not carry any cash for such purchases because the charges for the selected automated services are included in the normal telephone bill for the user""s mobile subscription.